a Loathsome Query
by Singular Poisonous Ashes
Summary: Elstette is forever stuck in a time loop and is the only one aware of it. Whilst trying to break it, she is met with cryptic notes and romance, both of which may be the key to getting out. The only problem is, that she may not be the reason behind the time loop and that there may be unidentifiable evils in the horizon still. Quite AU in certain ways. OCxDamien vs OCxHieronymous
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Don't own.

Chapter one.

Elstette watched her husband from across crossed arms. He was sleeping soundlessly, his chest rising with each exhale and inhale. She smiled as he wrinkled his nose, his breath displacing a lock of hair from his forehead. She had never expected to become married to her teacher, and Hieronymous Grabiner especially.

She thought back on their first meeting, all those months ago. It seemed just yesterday when they collided into one another. Hieronymous has been extraordinary rude, back then. He'd scolded her for his own inattention as much as hers, but she'd been a young freshman full of hopes and dreams and nerves. She giggled, raising a hand to muffle the sound so as not to wake him.

Hieronymous had given her demerits, and she'd had to work her butt off to get her stats back to normal. The grumpy face that had given her so much fear back then, was nothing but hilarious now, chiefly considering how well she knew that smile was nothing but a façade he put on. He was romantic, her Hieronymous, and attentive. They hadn't yet made love - Hieronymous wouldn't have it - though Elstette had managed to sneak a kiss from him, while he hadn't been paying attention.

Her eyes, lit up with fondness, softened as she remembered the firm feeling of his lips against her. They had grounded her, as she tended towards daydreaming, and had been real in a way she'd thoroughly enjoyed. Her Hieronymous was truly nothing but a big teddy bear - a gruff exterior with a plush ridden interior - and her hand searched for his underneath the covers. Neither of them were naked - Hieronymous wouldn't have it - but they still slept together. Hieronymous liked to say it was to protect her. She had giggled at the admonishment, for what was there to protect her from?

Elstette's smile dampened at the thought, as she remembered that there were actually quite a lot of deadly things on campus. It was still possible to enter the Spiral Gate leading to the Drapes in between the World - which emitted a poisonous odour into the world, when opened - as was the way Hieronymous' previous amour had lost her life. Asides from Hieronymous, another teacher taught magic. Sabine Morynn, who mainly taught white and green magic.

Both were precarious routes to follow, and the woman was far too lenient with her students, concerning what could be done and the consequences thereof. It was not only her, who was far too harmful to the students she taught, but also the headmistress who had classes to teach of her own. She taught red and black magic, respectively. Her sugar-sweet countenance went against her sink and swim way of instruction, and was very creepy nonetheless. She tended to teach people curses far beyond their comprehension, and if they failed and reaped the repercussions thereof, she washed her hands from it.

Apparently students needed to be wise beyond their age and, without any instruction, realize that some things weren't meant to be played with. Of course, if she didn't even give her pupils any warnings, than how could they know they could get burnt? Elstette didn't know who was worse - Sabine or the headmistress? - yet in any case, Hieronymous would always be her favourite.

He was quite ill tolerant towards any tomfoolery in his classes, and that just meant there were less accidents. Of course, because of that, he'd rendered a reputation of being quite intolerant in whatever situation. Often, situations that Hieronymous could have dealt with much better, where dealt with by the others of the staff, and often rather poorly.

Elstette's friend, Damien, had been one of the first who'd torn apart her rose coloured glasses regarding the staff and their teaching methods. He'd told her not everything was as it seemed. He'd told her she could lose her soul, or worse. She still often met up with Damien, and had some not-so-official dates with him, despite her permanent occupation as Hieronymous' wife. The haggard man didn't know, and Elstette wasn't planning on him finding out. What she had with Damien, outside of friendship, was just no strings attached physical closeness.

Hieronymous didn't understand that young women like Estette have certain needs that needed met. It was all right and proper that he was going to wait until she was legal before he even so much as kissed her - her kissing him when he slept did not count - and that was just not good enough. Elstette required loving. She required being ravished by a soft hand and pliable lips. And, Damien met her set needs quite well and was a gentleman too - about the whole 'friends-with-benefits' status their relationship had fallen into.

The half demon was incredibly experienced and had made her first time a joyful thing bereft of any disappointment. It had left her aching - aching for her own husband's malleable flesh - and she supposed Damien took advantage of that. Whatever one might call whatever it was between Damien and her, it worked out, and Elstette wasn't willing to allow anything to ruin it. That included any non-existent twinges of guilt she felt about it, now and then. Estette was a dutiful wife - she was fine with waiting - but that did not mean it was a sin to quench her thirst in the meantime.

Hieronymous stirred underneath her hand, and she could feel his pulse pick up from where she had her hand wrapped around his wrist. Maybe he'd picked up on the unfaithful thoughts she was having, even from beyond the realm of the conscious? It would not surprise her. Elstette usually never had these sorts of thoughts when being so close to him. She thought too well of him - Hieronymous could do anything, even read minds! – so usually his very presence was enough of a distraction.

"Estette?" he moaned, as he peeled his sleep crusted eyes open. "How early is it?" he asked, as she was usually awake before him. She let her gaze trail towards the bedroom side cabinet at the side of the bed. "Five am - you still have an half an hour of sleep left." He gazed at her, uncomprehending, before he mumbled something softly, rolled over his shoulder, and fell to sleep again.

She squeezed his hand softly, before retracting her own and slipping out from beneath the covers. Poor Hieronymous. He'd probably gone so late to bed again, last night, spending his whole evening on the next week's curriculum. He was such a dedicated soul, her husband was. If only he'd satisfy her as well as his job.

She strode across the room and towards the wardrobe, were she gathered Hieronymous' teaching robe for him and some fresh pair of clothing for herself. Even though she was married to her teacher, there was absolutely no favouritism while in the classroom, and just like all his students, she had to wear her school uniform. It was an unflattering thing; her school uniform. A baggy robe which clung to her in unflattering places, accentuating the curves she usually sought to downplay and downplaying those that were actually attractive.

She grabbed hold of her cape, which she'd draped over the lamp, and threw it over her shoulders, tying it handily across her throat. There, done. Now for the finishing touches. She came to stand before the floor length mirror, admiring her reflection with a briskness only confidence could achieve, and then started on her makeup. Damien liked her better without it - probably nostalgic of when she'd only just arrived at the school and kept herself as plain as a daisy. She liked looking better for her husband, though, so with deft hands she drew herself a new face - though not quite as drastic.

She came out, bouncing down the halls, looking glossy and well-kept. She hadn't done her nails yet, but she usually only gave them a soak in some clear varnish, so that could be skipped. She returned to what had once been her dorm, where she still often went to visit her old dorm-mates. There was Ellen, who's name was a smidgen similar to hers, and whom she'd liked from the start for that very reason, and Virginia, who's relaxed nature often managed to calm Elstette down when in hysterics. She knew that Ellen was about to leave for the library - she was the school treasurer, and had to be there every five thirty at the dot to send everyone their mail and assorted necessities - and would often accompany the other on her trips. She didn't have to wait long and there Ellen was, looking rather dishevelled but awake nevertheless. They quietly shut the door on their way out, so that Virginia wouldn't be woken up.

When they left for the library, Minnie was there as well, and seemed to be making annotation to a thick envelop of documents. She waved at them when they neared, gesturing for them to sit next to her on the chairs already placed there.  
>"The amount of pocket-money each person is allowed has been doubled, to be implemented immediately." Minnie looked at the treasurer with a trusting smile. "I trust you won't snatch the extra for your own pockets?"<p>

Elstette remembered a time when that had happened, due to the treasurer before Ellen. But Ellen was incredibly dependable; there was no way such a thing would happen on her basis. Ellen looked half-offended, despite the joking tune Minnie's words had taken on. Problem was, Ellen always looked offended. It was one of her charms.  
>"I'd be more likely to use my connection to Ellen for evil purposes, than that would ever happen," Elstette assured Minnie, nevertheless.<p>

Ellen elbowed Estette somewhat strongly in the stomach before the two of them shared an understanding smile. It softened the pain now radiating from her gut. Ellen was vastly independent and had probably not liked what Elstette had implied. Ugh. Whatever. Ellen turned to accept the package of letters from Minnie, who'd oh-so-helpfully handed it to her.

They were out on the corridors in no time. It was always interesting walking the halls when it was still early morning, as Elstette often came across pupils that she didn't know - either seniors who were studying day and night for exams, or people who only came out when there were very little people around. Her eyes lit up brightly as she caught sight of one specific person. One specific senior. One specific senior with passionate purple wings. "Damien!" she greeted, waving like an excited child as she corrected herself to move towards him.

She could distantly hear Ellen heave a sigh of exasperation from behind her as the girl realized that with a distraction such as Damien there, it was likely Elstette wasn't going to accompany her anymore. Oops? Elstette didn't like turning out to be unreliable, but she'd already come to stand before her paramour, so she couldn't exactly change tracks just in the middle of it. So instead, she made a jumping leap, and Damien caught her and swung her easily back on her feet, none worse to wear.

"What can I do for you?" he asked her, affectionately eyeing her from beneath his thick eyelashes. She grinned at the fondness she knew he held for her, swinging her arms easily behind her. "Nothing much! I just want a kiss, that too much to ask?" Since nobody knew that she was married to her teacher, she was able to express her attraction to Damien - infamous player - without anyone giving her a second glance. Of course, she was careful that nobody in Hieronymous' immediate social circle saw any displays of her unfaithfulness, but that was easy, since they were never ever on campus anyway, and Hieronymous took rumours from students with a pinch of salt.

Damien acquiesced to her childish demands with a satisfied curve of his lips, placing an arm around her waist as he bent his head. It was with a moue of distaste that Elstette took in the kiss placed on the crown of her head - he teased her way too much. She wound her hands through his arms, her childish pout a demand, and pulled his face towards her. She was always the one who initiated the kisses. Humph, that was always displeasing, though it did make her feel more mature. She wondered, during the kiss, what Damien's reasons for that were. Well, it didn't really matter either way.

Her eyes stayed open, marvelling, as always, about Damien's exquisite colouring. They pulled away, eventually, his thumb tracing the curve of her chin, before he placed a kiss behind her earlobe - untangling them completely from one another afterwards. "Did you have something metallic to eat before now?" Elstette found herself asking, pondering with her finger on her chin about the peculiar coppery taste of him.

"Something like that," Damien told her, slanting to the side, amused. She shrugged. Well, that didn't matter. It was pleasant in any case. She turned her back to him, shielding her eyes with a hand, peering through the moderately empty corridors. "Agh, look what you've done. Ellen left me behind!" She was just fortunate not too much time had passed that she couldn't catch up. She sent Damien one last wave, and then set off.  
>She was half way down the pavilion before the pain hit.<p>

"Wake up sleepyhead!" she heard a voice call her, though the voice was thin and foggy, as if talking from underwater. Elstette moaned, slapping weakly after pinpointing the origin of the voice. Her head felt like it had gone through a ringer. Not the best of way to wake up in the morning.  
>"Aha, she's awake!" A cheerful voice called out, different from the one before. Elstette finally creaked open her eyelids. It was her ex-roommates that she saw, and not the husband she had expected. Huh?<p>

"What're you two doing here?" Elstette found herself asking.  
>"We're your roommates, remember?" Virginia answered, peevishly.<br>"Since yesterday," Ellen piped up from where she was placing her books onto their shelves in alphabetical order. Yesterday? What were they on about? Elstette groggily forced herself to sit up, pulling her legs over the bed. Her gaze went to where she knew Ellen had placed a calendar.

"August the 23rd?" she found herself ashen. Could it be...She didn't even remember herself falling to sleep last night. In fact, she could only remember the pain in crystal clarity.  
>Pain for what? Maybe this was all a joke her ex-roommates had devised after finding Elstette's unconscious self? "Come on, that can't be true," Elsette tried to appeal to her ex-roommates senses. The two shared a confused look at her words, instead of dropping the act, like she would have liked. Maybe...<p>

Maybe it wasn't an act?

"Nevermind," Elstette interjected before either of the two could break her last hope that this was all a joke played on her.  
>"We have school, so I'll be changing." She nodded at each of them, before she grabbed her untarnished school uniform - too clean, too crisp, way too new - and walked inside the bathroom. Once the door closed behind her she broke down. Sliding down the door, coddling her head in her arms. Okay, what the fuck. Elstette wasn't one for swearing, but for some certain situations, she would not hold back. She wasn't one to be in denial; she'd already concluded that somehow, someway, she'd travelled back in time. That wasn't that difficult a conclusion to reach, considering she was already always surrounded by magic that went beyond any kind of logic.<p>

The only problem was, things like that just didn't happen by itself. There had to be a reason; perhaps someone was even behind it, or maybe the future itself had collapsed. She didn't know and that was dangerous. She quickly changed before Virginia and Ellen could get suspicious - anymore than they already were - and entered the bedroom again. She smiled, rubbing the back of her head, the quirk of her lips sheepish.

"Sorry, just had some short term memory loss. 'M fine now." Her words seemed to convince them, thank god and eventually all three of them were dressed up for the day. Elstette took a look at her timetable for the week, and ended up following Ellen to her white magic class. While there, Elstette found to her horrified disbelief, that they were learning the basics again. Not even any practical; all theory! It was enough to evoke madness. Elstette groaned softly under her breath, pillowing her head above her arms.

* * *

><p>AN So a lot of the magic abilities in this will be AU. There's also another teacher, because I thought it would be impossible to teach with only two. Heck, even the events in it is quite AU, but that's what happens with Looping fics.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Don't own.

Chapter two.

The worst was, that when she'd had enough of the teacher's monologue and tried to get some real practise in magic, her magic wouldn't work! Maybe, as time had reset, so had her magic capabilities. The thought dawned upon her with a fair amount of pain. All those hours, almost a year of tutelage, wasted. Not really wasted, perhaps though, because the events that had given her her skillset hadn't yet occurred. If she remembered correctly, she'd specialized mainly in blue magic because Damien had given her that tip. It had turned out well in her first dungeon where she'd gained a lot of merits for using the teleportation ability to get herself out. Should she do the same?

Blue magic had only been interesting in as far as it's use in the school's exams, though. The magic of change hadn't been all that appealing to her outside of it, though she'd been admittedly talented with it. If she did decide to specialize differently this time around, what would it be? Red magic, while appealing to the more farcical part of herself, was more Virginia's suit than hers. White magic, while convenient, was too incorporeal for Elstette to truly be satisfied. A bit like blue magic, actually.

Elstette sat up, her pen rapidly scratching down notes of the teacher's instruction. Her mind was a hundred miles way, going over the merits of the other routes of magic. That left green magic and black magic; both of which the fruits of labour were easily perceived. That was always satisfying. She supposed she could specialize in both, though it meant a longer time reaching the status she had in the past - or future, as it now were. That reminded her that her status as Grabiner's wife had been stripped.

It didn't bother her too much - she could always marry him another time, and this time with his explicit agreement and not just for convenience sake. She knew enough about him to know how to gain his fond attention once more. Now, returning her relationship with Damien back to the state as it would be, well, that was far more difficult. She knew enough about him to realize that he tended to have very shallow relationships with others. She didn't know what she'd done in the first time to garnish so much of his heart into her possession, but it was probably not something that could be replicated just by acting the way she had in the past. No, that did not seem to be the case.

Still deep in thought, she ghosted after Ellen at lunch.  
>"I heard there were clubs we could join - " Ellen was saying, before she stopped in her tracks at the sight of Virginia. She was waving at them, beckoning really, from across the room, three trays balancing in her arms. They hurried to catch up, after which Virginia divested herself of two of the trays.<br>"Lunch," she said, "On advice of the older brother of yours truly." She guided them to the quad, where they sat and ate their lunch at the steps leading to the pavilion.

"This isn't that bad," Elstette stated thoughtfully after snatching a bit of soup dipped bread with her teeth. She knew very well that cafeteria food was often hit and miss. It almost made her miss the thought of Hieronymous' home cooking. Ellen though, was wrinkling her nose while gazing at her own meal. Apparently she had finer taste buds than anything that the cafeteria allowed. Poor Ellen. Elstette swung a companionable arm around the girl's shoulder.  
>"At least the milkshakes are good!" she proclaimed, taking a swig of her own. Mmm. Vanilla extract.<p>

Ellen sent her a hopeless look before, like a bird, starting to pick at her food. Elstette grimaced, rather abruptly losing her appetite. She saw Kyo in the distance. Kyo was a fuckface and she meant that in every sense of the word. The little asshole was a tyrant and as unhealthy as unhealthy could be. He'd had Minnie in his claws, before Elstette had told her husband about the unnatural relationship the two held, after which the man had put a rather final stop to it. Her face twisted into something ugly as she contemplated that this Kyo hadn't had that talk. So this Kyo was still planning on scarring Minnie beyond repair emotionally.

"What, did he kill your puppy or something?"  
>It was Virginia's voice, and it recalled the red haze that had started entering her vision. She breathed out, unfurling her knuckle which had dug in tight.<br>"Heh, something like that." If Minnie could be called a puppy. She didn't elaborate any further, since they didn't really need to know. That was Minnie's business, and hers, she supposed.

The next week was when they would have their first exam. The school's exams were peculiar, in that they took place in dungeons. The goal was to find a way out of the dungeon. Merits were given depending on how much time it took to reach the end, how much magic it took and how much harm was received during the exam period. Elstette was taken outside of her dorm, then made to speak with the headmistress, before the scene faded away before her eyes and the dungeon layout took it's place.

"I remember this," Elstette mused to herself as she took in the general four walls setup of the dungeon. As far as she could remember, there was a pitfall which she had to cross to get to the other side and out of the dungeon. If she would travel further through the dungeon, she would find a slab of concrete that she could transpose over the pit and use as a makeshift bridge. However, because she wasn't specializing in blue magic, she would not be able to transport the slab over the bridge as she had the last time. She had her grimoire in hand, and flipped through the pages, feverishly trying to find a spell that could work.

Her fingers hovered over the green magic section. If she had enough experience she would have been able to bring to life a tree of some kind to act as an intermediate step so she could jump across the pit. She wasn't yet resourceful enough to make use of it, however. Besides, for it to work, she would need the seeds of a tree to have already been planted in the dungeon ground. That, or she needed to have them at hand, which she did not. So black magic was her only option. She frowned to herself - she could make use of the materials of the slab of concrete which had been stationed further in the dungeon and use the blueprint of the bridge's dimensions from when she'd teleported it onto the pit. That should work. Elstette moved towards where she knew the slab would be.  
>"WAIT, what?" She exclaimed in anger, because the slab wasn't there anymore.<p>

Impossible! She'd seen it just minutes before! She'd taken a bit more time to return to the slab the other time round, too. It should still be here! Instead, she could just see just faintly the sliver of a piece of paper on the impression the slab had made on the rock floor. She crouched down, reaching for it, but winched when her finger connected with the material. A crunch, like something had bitten it. She straightened her back again, holding the flimsy piece between her nails, so it couldn't come in contact with more of her flesh. And then she read.

"Hello, Elstette," it read - so it had been meant to be read by her! - "I will drag you down from your lofty place on that pedestal of yours. You have been a persistent pest to me, far too many times. And like a cockroach, you just won't stay dead. Maybe this is how the farmers off old felt, before pesticide was invented? So instead, I'll drag you and your reputation in the mud. It's the least I could do to such a pain in the ass as you've turned out to be. It's pointless to resist. I will stain your name so the moniker of 'pure' won't ever fit you again. Don't misunderstand - I am not doing this just because I felt like it. That would achieve nothing - there is always a reason. The grudge I hold against you is exceedingly personal and that self-righteous moral high ground of yours doesn't suit you or my purposes. So it'll have to go."

She squinted to the bottom of the paper, but there was no name given in return. She felt queasy to the bottom of her stomach. So she had been sabotaged, and on purpose, so it would seem. She tightened her hands into fists, discarding the paper where it once lay. In a flash of off-white (toxic) smoke and an ember of flame, it disappeared. Now that she didn't have the slab of concrete anymore, what was she going to do?

She went over her grimoire five times, but no, with the amount of power she had now, she couldn't do anything. She was too weak, as she'd diluted her power into two specialities. So instead, she waited for the headmistress to come fetch her and give her demerits for the hack job she'd achieved. She didn't have to wait long.

"My little bumblebee, it is with pain in my heart that I have to give you these demerits." Headmistress Petunia Potsdam actually looked grief struck at Elstette's failure to perform. "Please do better next time. Now, if that's all, I have another person to visit."

What a drama queen. Elstette made a face at her back, before turning around and brushing a strand of her hair behind her ear. She folded her arms over her chest, contemplation carving lines into her face. She'd been sabotaged, but how? She'd thought only certain teachers had access to the dungeons. Perhaps it was an upperclassman who'd been roped up into helping set up the dungeons? Grabiner had used to do that when she was his wife. Well, at least that shortened the list of who exactly could have written that rather creepy note.

Who knew that she usually kept a moral high ground? Only someone from the future, of course. So, somehow, someone must also kept their memory from before the reset. And that someone was either a teacher (unlikely) or a senior. There were loads of students in the senior class, however. So she still didn't have any ground to stand on.

She met up with her ex- (no longer) roommates and they held a discussion about the exam. Ellen had apparently managed to teleport the bridge into the pit - like she'd done the other time around. Virginia grinned sheepishly, showing them her arms. From her wrist to the elbow up, the skin had been separated from her flesh. Elstette winched.  
>"Ouch," she muttered, and leaned forwards over the bed to take a better look of it.<p>

Once, when she had been very young, she remembered climbing on a block of bricks tied together by a string. The string had turned out to be fragile, and the blocks had shifted. She'd been able to slip herself off of the block, except that the bricks had followed her on her way down and slid down her legs - and they'd been naked legs, as she'd been wearing only tight length shorts. It had hurt as hell, though she'd not ended up with any permanent scars or even any puncturing wounds. The bricks had scraped the skin of her legs away. The wounds reminded her of Virginia's.

"I used 'attract stone,' in an attempt to bend the wall over the pit so I'd be able to walk across, except I didn't realize the strength the wall required to control. So instead of only the far of wall becoming under my control, the whole stone structure of the dungeon became mine. Except that that's far too much for me to control, so the whole dungeon began to collapse while the rest of my mana ran out. Luckily, I'd only been able to move the whole of the structure a millimetre across, so instead of caving myself in, all I managed to do was cause some structural damage that made the walls shorten in breadth and width. Of course, because of that, and since I'm so tall..."

She gestured with her arms, raising them above her; "I tried to protect myself from the ceiling falling, except that it stopped after a certain amount of change had been made in the layout. Unfortunately, that meant that the wall still managed to scrape itself across my arms before I had the bright idea of simply ducking, you know?" Ellen and Elstette stared at their roommate as if they'd never seen her before. In all honestly, that was probably the worst way to wreck a dungeon that Elstette had ever heard of. And, as a teacher's wife, she had come to know a lot of them. Seriously. What the hell had brought on such a change from her last try around, anyway?

"That escalated quickly," Ellen prudently pointed out, before her hands became bathed in green light and she began to run them over Virginia's wounds. Elstette remembered blatantly that the school only cared for wounds that actually drew blood. Bruises, scrape wounds, and other such wounds that were painful but not especially threatening tended to be left on their own to heal. Ellen's use of green magic didn't heal in the strictest definition of the word, in any case. The green glow was mainly useful for encouraging a patient's own magic reservoirs to increase the speed of natural regeneration.

That there were results were mainly to blame on Virginia's rapidly refilling mana pool as Ellen's technique wasn't all that refined. And why would it be, considering she'd only just learnt the skill? The Ellen in Elstette's time had been an expert at it. She shook her head. Ellen was probably just going to have to go through the same effort to reach that level of mastery. They were both still Ellen. We-weren't they?

Elstette frowned to herself as she walked over the gleaming floors of the mall. Were the people she knew, really the people she knew? Ellen hadn't gone through the same experiences as her Ellen had - did that make her the same Ellen? Or not? What about her husband, Virginia, or even Damien? Were they her friends, her loved ones, or not? Around this time is when she'd started to bond with them. Now was when everything could still change, one way or another, and prevent the bonds she'd had with them from existing. But neither Ellen nor Virginia seemed different from their future counterparts. And they were themselves, weren't they? At their core, they were still Ellen and Virginia, and even if Elstette wasn't content with them, it wasn't as if her version of the two still existed...

Right?

She frowned even harder as she turned the corner towards the arcade across the street. It was more likely that Virginia and Ellen, if they weren't themselves at this point in time, would become so in the future. There wasn't anyway that the potential they held could change, even with Elstette alliterated self as their roommate rather than the past Elstette.

Besides, Elstette had very little input on the people her roommates had become, as she'd been incredibly self-absorbed in the future. At a certain point, she'd paid her own affairs and Virginia's brother and Damien all her focus and left none left for Ellen and Virginia. Of course, included under that number was her husband to be. Their marriage had been a sham from the very beginning. Elstette was actually glad that it had been stripped from her. Now Hieronymous could propose to her on her own merits, and not for convenience sake.

When she entered the arcade it was to meet Steven on her way to the pinball machines. His face was a mask of concentration. "Hey bro," she greeted him, only just after remembering that they'd not met yet. Steven had been a friend of hers; an adorable, adorable, manic version of a friend. They'd had many adventures together, adventures in which his prized bunny had also joined. She looked him up and down, frowning. He felt out of place; probably because, at this moment, he still hadn't won his prized bunny. It had been such an integral part of him, though, that she made a silent promise with herself to help him win it once more.

Steve greeted her with a small wave, before he turned back, refocusing on the pinball machine. She remembered feeling a bit insulted the last time, but now she knew Steven was simply socially awkward which is why he seems a bit too abrupt. That was alright. She liked him that way. She watched idly from her vantage place beside his shoulder as Steven expertly worked the ball. It was seven o'clock when she finally left for home.

A/N This character is super confident and sees things with rose coloured glasses... isn't she cuuuuuute? Now, if only that'll continue ... fat chance of that happening. Her creator is a sadist! Also, I've had my first Mary-Sue accusation! I'm so proud of myself.


End file.
